Bottle closure



may 11 192621A 1,584,103

H. S. LEE

BOTTLE C LOSURE Fiied oct. 6', 1925 Patented May 11, i926.

FFQ.

HARRY S. LEE, OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK.

BOTTLE CLOSURE.

Application lcd Getober 6, 1925.

This invention relates to bottle closures, designed for use inconnection with bottles and jars commonly employed for serving anddispensing milk, cream, and the like, for

household and other uses.

My invention has especial reference to thc class of bottle closuresshown and described, for example, in United States Patent No. 919,937,dated April 2?, i909, wherein a hood-like cap, such as paper, or othernonnietallic material is snugly fitted to and overlays the top of thebottle, and also a portion of the neck below the usual beaded mouth, andsupplements the well-known disc stopper, which is tightly applied to thesunken seat that surrounds the mouth of the ordinary milk bottle.

The present invention relates particularly to improvements in thefastening devices shown and described in my pending application, SerialNo. 40,5571, filed June 29, 1925.

-The object of the present invention is to provide a cheap, light,stout, pliable fastener or tie, which preferably comprises a flat wovenflexible tape or band, or may consist of any suitable cotton or othertwine, that may be tightly wound around the portion of the bottle neckthat is overlaid with the snug fitting hood, and then securely tied bymeans of a knot, for preventing removal or looseninn' of the hood,without showing that the skirt has been tampered with. The knot by whichthe loose ends of the tape are secured, in the present case, preferablycomprises one, two or four loops or bows, instead of the plain squareknot of my pending application, and in order to render suchbow-knoteffective for preventing unauthorized untying or loosening ofthe tape, after the completing of the tying' operation, the projectingloops or bows, as well as the loose ends of the tape are cut or shearedadjacent the body of the knot, for providing a number of relativelyshort radial ends, simulating` a rosette, which if tampered with tend todestroy the binding effect of the fastener, and the said cuttine` ortrimming of the loops and ends furthermore result in the shortening ofthe tape to such extent that vit is impossible to retie the fastener.

The various features and parts of the invention will be understood fromthe detailed description which follows, and by referenceto theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a broken elevation andpartial Section of a milk bottle whose mouth is Serial No. 60,880.

closed by a fibrous hood, to which my improved fastener is applied;showing the loops of a double bow-knot clipped or trimmed. Fig. 2 is asimilar view; showing the tape tied with a double bow-knot ready for thefinal shearing or trimming' operation. F ig. 8 is a side elevation,showing` the fastening tape tied in a manner to provide four loops orbows. Figs. 4i, 5 and 6, show respectively diagrammatic views of single,double and quadruple bow-knots; the full lines in said views showing therespective knots after the loops and loose ends have been trimmed. AndFig. 7 is a reduced plan view of the disc from which the hoodisvforme'd.

ln the drawing, -2 represents the body of an ordinary milk bottle orcontainer, such as commonly used for serving milk and cream tocustomers. 3 is the neck of the bottle, whose top is formed with theusual annular bead e, that surrounds the mouth 5; thelatter being formedwith a depressed annular socket or seat 6, to receive the well-knowndisc stopper 7. 8 represents a hood-like external closure or cap, whichis usually made of a tough flexible variety of paper, the said capbeingordinarily furnished to the bottlers in the form of a disc, as 8(see Fig. 7) whichis applied to the top of the bottle (see Figs. i and2) immediately after the bottle is filled and sealed by means of thestopper 7. rllhe central portion 8a of the disc 8 overlays the mouth ofthe bottle,parallel to the stopper 7, and after the adjacent medialportion is molded around the bead 4, the margin of the disc iscompressed and molded against the neck 8 below lthe bead, for forming acontracted snug fitting skirt 8l. Where no other fastening means areemployed, the skirt 8b is usually pasted or otherwise secured to theneck, by paraffin or other suitable temporary adhesive (not shown). Inpractice, it has been found that the more or less rough handling of thebottles by the deliverymen, tends to loosen the lightly pasted skirts8b, and in some cases the hoods are tampered with, either for thepurpose of substituting the contents ofthe bottles, or for makingunauthorized use of the saine. These troubles have heretofore beenovercome by various means, such for example, as by winding about theneck 3 a wire, or by applying' a rubber band of suitable tension to holdthe skirt in place, as shown at 12 in the aforementionedpatent. Stillanother means for securing the skirt in place is shown in my alsco-pending application, whereina 'atlflexible band or tap-e, is woundaround the skirt, and is then tied by means of a square knot, afterwhich the free ends ofthetape .are overlapped and securely stitched orsewed, for preventing tampering with the knot; This sewing of the looseends of the fastener requires the employment of a more or lesscomplicated and expensive sewing mechanism,'which not onlyggreatlyincreases the cost of sealing the bottlesybut alsoA prolongs the workofpreparing tlie'bottles for delivery. In the present case, thefastening means preferably comprises a' similar flat flexiblenon-elastic tape, `as 9, which may be' readily a-nd quickly coiledaround the portion of the neckf that is overlai'dby the skirt 8", afterwhich the ends of the tape are tiedlirst with a single knot, and thenformed with double loops orbows, as 595-9El and two loose ends, as9b-9c, all of which Vparts are finally drawn tight'inthe usual manner,asl shown in Fig. 2. The tape 9 employed for securing' the skirt i 8b,is usually wou-nd upon a spool (not shown), from whic'hthe tape is'fe'dcontinuously into the tyingmachine, andafter each tying operation, thewoundiand tied portions of the tape are severed, as` shown at m in Fig.2, by any suitable slfieai-ii-ig'l ymef'zhanism (not shown). 'At thisstage ofthe binding and fastening of the skirt 8b, according to F ig. 2,theknot comprises two loops 9-9EL and the resultant' 'free ends' 59h-9".If. the fasten ers wereleft in this condition, the -tape 9 might bereadily untied bysimply pulling on the loose en'ds.9b-`9, in awell-known manner, and the cap 8.1niglit then' be readily removed andthe contents off the bottle tampered with' or used, and the sai-d partsmight beniafterwards replaced andthe tape .again tied, without danger ofdetection. In order topprovide against such unauthorized unfasteriingand removing of the cap `8,.and.the retying of' the tape 9, thebottlingmachine is preferably equipped with suitable means (not shown) forclipping or shearing the severalloops 9-'-9a', as well as theloose endsSP4-9b ofy the bow-knot, preferably at Vthe points rindicated bythebroken lines 9I in Figs. 2 and 3. This shearing of the loops and Yendsofthe tape leaves theknot in the condition shown in .'Fig'. 1.and bythefullA lines in F ig. 5, wherein six relatively short loose ends( orarms, as 9b, 9can'd' 9X, are shown radiating from the central .body- 9eofthe knot. By thi-s construction yand arrangement of the knot, anyattempt to loosen the tape.

9, as bypulling on the said arms or strands, will resulty in withdrawingall but two of the .arms effected bythe shearing, therebyk leaving theknot so loosely tied that thetape 9 may be readily slipped downwardlybodily fandfreed':fromtheskirt 8b. The cap 8 may then be removed and thecontents of the bottle withdrawn by simply displacing the stopper 7. Theshearing of the loops and loose ends' ofthe knot so short-ens the tapethat the latter cannot again be coiled around the skirt 8" and tied ina. manner tok present to the `accustomed eye a knot having siX radialarms,..for example, as shown in Figs. l and 5. In practice, the milkvendors usually adopt a knot having one, two or four loops or bows,.andv their customers are able by means of visual inspectionto instantlydetect. any tampering with the hoodfastening means, as described.

In Figs. 3 and ,G the knot-- is shown formed with four loops, as l0, 10lOu andlOb, and when the loops and arms 10C-l0d are slieared on thebroken lines 9 ten ends or arms radiate from; the body of the knot, asshown diagrai'nmatically in F 6, and present a 'rosette'appearance Anyattempt to loosen the knot, as by'pulling' on' the several arms, will,result in withdrawing all but two of the said arms, and correspondinglyloosening the knot, and rendering'they tape incapable ofvv being retied,without sho-wing mutilation oftherosette and-1 therefore indicatingtampering.

Having thus described myy invention,what I clainn'is- '1. A combinedfastener and means 'for indicating. unauthorized tampering with theprotective .wrapper of an article comprising ampliable tape, the endsof'tiie tape being tiedbyineans of a bow-knot and the bows being shearedfl r providing a plurality ofv radiating arms in' addition to'tlrenormal free ends of the tape,.and the-shearing of'said bows effecting asubstantial 'shortening of the tape adapted toprev-ent replacing of thefastener and restoringof vthe tape to'the wrapper in case the knotisunti'ed.

2. A combined fastener and means for indicating unauthorized tamperingwith the protective wrapper ofan article composed of ya band.having'ends ti'edby'means ofa pluralityA of bow-knots so'as to leavethe ends loose, thebowsbeing sli-eared to provideY additional looseends, the ends being all ar rangedlto conjointly simulate a--rosette-sigu-` fying authorized sealing ofthearticle and being of such lengthso as toprevent retying and restoringofthe rosette.

In testimony whereofl alix'my signature.

'HRRY S. LEE.

